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Vote condemning Hamas for firing rockets into Israel fails at UN

A US-sponsored resolution condemning militant group Hamas for firing rockets into Israel has failed to pass at the UN General Assembly. The resolution won a majority of 87 to 57, with 33 abstentions, but did not reach the required two-thirds backing. US envoy Nikki Haley had said adoption would right a "historic wrong" as the UN has not passed such a condemnation. A Hamas spokesman said the outcome was a "slap" to President Donald Trump's administration. Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu said that although the two-thirds was not achieved, this was the first time there was a "sweeping majority of countries " who had stood up against Hamas. Resolutions at the UN can carry political weight but are non-binding. This resolution was the first condemning Hamas that the 193-nation assembly had considered. Ahead of the vote, Ms Haley, who steps down at the end of the year, said she wanted to "ask my Arab brothers and sisters - is the hatred toward Israel so strong that you'll defend a terrorist organisation? One that is directly causing harm to the Palestinian people?" A vote to require a two-thirds majority was narrowly backed by 75 to 72, with 26 abstentions.